I Still Learn from Dr. King

I have been thinking a lot about Martin Luther King, Jr recently. And, today we recognize him. I read his book A Knock at Midnight several times a year, which is a collection of his sermons. He has one sermon I quote often where he and his brother are driving late at night and high beams are shining into their car window making it hard to see. Martin’s brother gets angry and tells him to turn on his and blind the other people–the way he feels he is being assaulted. Martin says something like “someone needs to keep their head on straight and stop the blinding of the drivers. I will be that person.”

I believe those of us awake to our Spiritual Selves are called right now to take the temperature down, to turn down our high beams, to remember how to be kind AND TO PRACTICE IT!! We are called to show up with open hearts and to be the exception to cultural madness. We are called to remember the Promise Land is a place within we go to every day that we might help our brothers and sisters out of Egypt. The temptation right now is to point at all of the horrible things happening, placing our energy into the hands of the horror. The invitation is to remain in Heaven, remain in the Consciousness of The One and The Only Divine Presence and to radiate this Presence wherever we go.

I have had an active, daily, spiritual practice now for thirty two years. I have discovered if I don’t brush my teeth after eating my breath stinks, if I don’t put deodorant on after a shower my armpits smell, and if I opt out of spiritual practice for a day I am caught in the world of form believing it to be Ultimate Reality. Spiritual practice is essential right now. It is our life line to Spirit. It is our Spiritual Food and fortitude. It also prevents us from stinking thinking.

I’ve had an interesting journey with the works of Martin Luther King, Jr. I continue to learn from him. I was first attracted to his teachings because he articulates love so well. I read his works and his sermons for a solid decade to be in the energy of that love. Then I turned my attention to his personhood. I read about his life. I was heartbroken to discover he had affairs on his wife. It would take me YEARS before I could reconcile within myself his personal decisions could be outside of my value system while the purity of his work could remain intact. I wrestled long and hard with this one. Once I squared it away with King I was able to show up with anyone accepting all of them, warts and all, with compassion. This was huge for my journey.

Now I look at him and his work from a different angle. He taught Americans how to protest peacefully. He taught how to harness a vision, an idea, to take that shared energetic power and utilize it in a social situation for good. This week as I watch the tear gas being thrown into crowds in Minnesota I am aware the protesters learned non-violent protesting from a master, Dr. King. I see history repeating itself from a governmental power brutalizing, not uplifting, its citizenry. His teaching of protest is currently serving our country, long after his passing.

As I return to the writings and sermons of Dr. King I become aware they are more important in my life, than ever. For me they are dimensional informing my understanding of love, deepening compassion in my daily life, and demonstrating protest as a form of love in action.

“I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant.” MLK, Jr From his 1964 Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech.

January 30th will begin the Season for Nonviolence which will go through April 4th. January 30 commemorates the death of Mohandas Gandhi and April 4th the death of Martin Luther King, Jr. During this time we will dive more deeply into living the power of Peace.

Catch Reverend Bonnie on YouTube live every Tuesday at 6 pm Pacific or replays anytime at www.youtube.com/@BonnieBarnard-scs.